Secrecy News

New USAF Bomber Already Under Development, Says CRS

A Request for Proposals from industry to develop a new Air Force Long Range Strike Bomber is said to be imminent. But in fact, the aircraft may already be under development, the Congressional Research Service said last week.

The projected funding stream for the proposed new aircraft “resembles a production program more than a typical development profile,” CRS said. “This may indicate that significant LRS-B [Long Range Strike Bomber] development has already been completed, presumably in classified budgets.”

“Such prior development would also help explain how the Air Force intends to get the system from a Request for Proposals to initial operational capability in about 10 years, when equally or less-complicated systems like the F-22 and F-35 have taken more than 20.”

Any pre-proposal development that may have occurred could also complicate the bidding process, CRS said.

“If there has in fact been considerable prior development, the Air Force will be challenged to construct a truly competitive RFP [because] whichever competitor may have done the bulk of any such preliminary LRS-B development is likely to have an advantage in the production contract.”